Early childhood education is extremely important to a child’s educational development. Children are constantly learning and absorbing information, somewhat like a sponge. Even when children are not being taught, they are learning from experience and observation. This early period for a child sees the greatest growth and development. Intelligence, personality, and social behavior are developed at this stage, and early education is a crucial part in their development. Not only that, but the early years of life are also a period when walking, talking, self-esteem, and moral foundations are established. Up until age four, a child is usually only taught by their parents. When a child reaches four or five they generally go off to preschool. However, some do not. Studies have shown that those children who do not are more likely to fall behind even before they enter kindergarten, and will find it harder to catch up to the other kids who have had prior schooling. The sad truth is that the vast majority of children who start behind, stay behind, leading to an increase of our nations dropout rate. Preschool allows kids to thrive in an environment where they can become confident learners and improve important skills needed during their lifetime.
Many children entering preschool tend to be either really eager or completely terrified. Preschool can be a rather daunting experience and kids that age thrive on familiarity, so when they are placed into a new situation it is common if they panic a bit. It was the total opposite for myself. My older brother would go off to school and I would be very jealous. I wanted to be able to experience the same thing. I had been a fairly curious child growing up and oftentimes impatient. I was sick of waiting around for my brother to get home; school just seemed like so much fun. The preschool I attended was called Wood River Preschool in Hope Valley, Rhode Island. It definitely helped prepare me for my future success in school as well as life. I improved my social skills along with my understanding of major school concepts; like reading and writing. I was very equipped to enter elementary school. I was only four when I began kindergarten, whereas most of my classmates were a year older than me.
The five years I spent at Richmond Elementary School gave me the chance to improve on myself as a learner and realize where my strengths and weaknesses were. At times it was difficult, but overall I enjoyed myself. The teachers were really nice and I can still remember all their names. Third grade was probably the toughest year of my elementary school career. My teachers’ name was Mrs. Lash, and she was known for her strictness. Even though it was a tough class, I learned quite a bit. She pushed me harder than any of my other elementary school teachers. The things she taught me still resonate with me today; like all the math problems she used to give and the tricks that she taught on how to solve them. I hope to one day put the skills and strategies I learned in her class to good use when I become an elementary teacher.
Elementary school taught me most of the skills I use on a daily basis. Organization was one of the major things I learned. We would all have “take home folders” for different subjects, where we would store our homework and important papers for our parents or vise versa. That specifically showed me that you need to have separate spaces for different subjects so they are easier to locate. I also learned a great deal about working collectively in a group, which was something we did a lot in my elementary school. Learning how to use creative skills is another example of something I was taught. Many of the projects I was given instructed me to use artistic ability, imaginative writing, or innovative reasoning. Even though it is something I am still learning about today, my ability to interact socially was something I learned mainly throughout early childhood education.
Everything I have learned during my early childhood education has enabled me to get this far in life. I know I would not be here at URI without the life lessons I was taught throughout my early years, they helped build the foundation for my successes and I know they will continue to help me throughout my college career as well.
Danielle Santagata
Jay Fogleman
EDC 102 H MWF
23 September 2011
Early School Experience
Early childhood education is extremely important to a child’s educational development. Children are constantly learning and absorbing information, somewhat like a sponge. Even when children are not being taught, they are learning from experience and observation. This early period for a child sees the greatest growth and development. Intelligence, personality, and social behavior are developed at this stage, and early education is a crucial part in their development. Not only that, but the early years of life are also a period when walking, talking, self-esteem, and moral foundations are established. Up until age four, a child is usually only taught by their parents. When a child reaches four or five they generally go off to preschool. However, some do not. Studies have shown that those children who do not are more likely to fall behind even before they enter kindergarten, and will find it harder to catch up to the other kids who have had prior schooling. The sad truth is that the vast majority of children who start behind, stay behind, leading to an increase of our nations dropout rate. Preschool allows kids to thrive in an environment where they can become confident learners and improve important skills needed during their lifetime.
Many children entering preschool tend to be either really eager or completely terrified. Preschool can be a rather daunting experience and kids that age thrive on familiarity, so when they are placed into a new situation it is common if they panic a bit. It was the total opposite for myself. My older brother would go off to school and I would be very jealous. I wanted to be able to experience the same thing. I had been a fairly curious child growing up and oftentimes impatient. I was sick of waiting around for my brother to get home; school just seemed like so much fun. The preschool I attended was called Wood River Preschool in Hope Valley, Rhode Island. It definitely helped prepare me for my future success in school as well as life. I improved my social skills along with my understanding of major school concepts; like reading and writing. I was very equipped to enter elementary school. I was only four when I began kindergarten, whereas most of my classmates were a year older than me.
The five years I spent at Richmond Elementary School gave me the chance to improve on myself as a learner and realize where my strengths and weaknesses were. At times it was difficult, but overall I enjoyed myself. The teachers were really nice and I can still remember all their names. Third grade was probably the toughest year of my elementary school career. My teachers’ name was Mrs. Lash, and she was known for her strictness. Even though it was a tough class, I learned quite a bit. She pushed me harder than any of my other elementary school teachers. The things she taught me still resonate with me today; like all the math problems she used to give and the tricks that she taught on how to solve them. I hope to one day put the skills and strategies I learned in her class to good use when I become an elementary teacher.
Elementary school taught me most of the skills I use on a daily basis. Organization was one of the major things I learned. We would all have “take home folders” for different subjects, where we would store our homework and important papers for our parents or vise versa. That specifically showed me that you need to have separate spaces for different subjects so they are easier to locate. I also learned a great deal about working collectively in a group, which was something we did a lot in my elementary school. Learning how to use creative skills is another example of something I was taught. Many of the projects I was given instructed me to use artistic ability, imaginative writing, or innovative reasoning. Even though it is something I am still learning about today, my ability to interact socially was something I learned mainly throughout early childhood education.
Everything I have learned during my early childhood education has enabled me to get this far in life. I know I would not be here at URI without the life lessons I was taught throughout my early years, they helped build the foundation for my successes and I know they will continue to help me throughout my college career as well.